’Eternal Empire’ is the third full-length album from German heavy/power metal band Human Fortress... and a solid one in my humble opinion.

In 2001 they released their debut album ‘Lord of Earth and Heaven Heir’ and it was followed by ‘Defenders of the Crown’ in 2003. But due to a baby-boom in the band members’ families the band had to do a break from 2003 to 2006. They are now back with a few line-up changes and new singer Carsten Frank (former Galloglass).

When I first threw this brand new album in my very, very exhausted CD-player I was quite disappointed. First of all because I found the 9 tracks (10... there's a hidden track to be found) quite boring and that’s not enough... no, almost every single track contains voice-overs... and it’s really, really annoying to listen to a guy telling me that I’m listen to a new promotional CD over and over again. Well... I was ready to throw it in the bin, but that’s not fair to the band and their fans.

As written above I was quite disappointed with this album at first... but after a few spins things started to change. The songs came alive and suddenly it wasn’t that bad after all, however ‘Eternal Empire’ never really ignites. Every song seems to be on the exact same level and even though that this is a solid release nothing REALLY stands out. Human Fortress fans can perhaps buy this album blindfolded but the rest of you out there should take a listen first.

Tracklist

01. Contrast02. Borders of Insanity03. The Wizard04. The Raven05. When Love and Hate Collide06. Under the Spell07. Lions Den08. Circles of Flames09. Falling Leaves